Committees

The Inn’s committees direct the activities and day to day management of the Inn.

The Inn’s main committees are the Education & Training Committee, the Scholarships Committee, the Estates Committee and the Library Committee. In some instances, the main committees have sub-committees to manage specific areas of activities, such as Qualifying Sessions and Advocacy Training.

The main committees of the Inn and the Finance Sub-Committee report to the Executive Committee, which considers issues that are fundamental to the Inn and its operations. The chairs of main committees are ex-officio members of the Executive Committee.

Bench Table is name given to the regular board meeting of the Governing Benchers of the Inn. Any Governing Bencher is welcome to attend. As outlined in BTO 16 and 17, some Bench Table meetings take the form of a Parliament where key decisions include the election of the Treasurer, approving the list of students to be Called to the Bar and approving the election of new Masters of the Bench. Many matters are considered first by the Executive Committee and then forwarded on to Bench Table/Parliament.

In addition to committees, there are also Masters of Activities who are responsible for particular matters within the scope of their title – such as the Master of Mooting, the Master of the Cellar, the Master of the Staff and the Master of the House.

Committee Membership

At the end of each year, the Reader (the incoming Treasurer for the following year) will consider committee membership. Governing Benchers will be surveyed to ascertain their committee and activity interests, and the structure and composition of each committee will be reviewed in consultation with Committee Chairs and Secretaries. A final list of committees will be subject to approval by Bench Table before becoming effective for the following year.

Members of Committees, Sub-Committee and Masters of Activities of the Society

The Bar Liaison Committee, the representative body for practitioner members of the Inn, elects Called members of the Inn to sit on all the Inn’s Committees and Sub-Committees and to support the Masters of Activities.